New programmes announced to improve health for visually impaired people living in low-income countries

Posted on 23 Nov 2012

As part of a programme which is supported by the British Government, Sightsavers is funding 13 new projects (out of a total of 477 proposals) which will focus on finding innovative ways to improve the health of disabled people living in low-income countries.

One of these projects highlighted by the DFID, is based within the School of Education and it will be looking at early childhood development and education for young children with visual impairment in Malawi. The project team will be developing and trialing a set of tools for assessing the development of young children with visual impairment as well as providing advice, guidance and interventions for the parents, caregivers and any community workers who support these families.

Lynne Featherstone, Minister for International Development at the UK Department for International Development, says:

'This fund offers an excellent chance for charities, academic institutions and businesses to work together and find innovative solutions to health or disability problems.

"I'm thrilled so many organisations are taking advantage of this opportunity and look forward to seeing the results - especially if they can be used later to address other health or disability challenges.'

You can read more about this announcement and find out more about the projects on the DFID website